Apparatus and process for making artificial construction material



Sept. 7 1926.

M. sKoLNlK APPARATUS AND PROCESS FQR MAKING ARTIFICIAL COSTRUCTION MA ERIAL Filed Sept. 1l. 1925 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 7 y 5 M. SKOLNIK APPARATUS AND PROCESS FOR MAKING ARTIFICIAL CONSTRUCTION MATERIAL Filed Sept. 11, 1925 -3nsheetssheet g A 30 w J2 "l .EK 22 34 Sept. 7 1926.

M. SKOLNIK APPARATUSvAND PROCESS FOR MAKING `ARTIFICIAL CONSTRUCTION MATERIAL Filed Sept. ll, 1925 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Figi Patented. Sept; 7, 1926.

UNITED STATES 1,599,253 PATENT; oFFlcE.

'MAX SKOLNIK, OF MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA,ASSIGNOR T0 PATENTED PRODUCTS CORPORATION, 0F GARY; INDIANA.

APPARATUS AND PROCESS FOR MAKING ARTIFICIAL CONSTRUOTION MATERIAL.

Application led September 11, 1925. Serial No. 55,681.

the finished products are produced, the corn-l stalks being reduced to a pulp which is compressed into sheet form and cut to the desired shape and size. The cornstalks may be reduced in anv suitable manner, such for instance as that disclosed in my prior applications Serial Number 524,764 filed December 24, 1921, now Patent 1,556,641, Oct. 13, 1925 and Serial'Number 693,523, filed February 18, 1924. A specific object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus and a process by means of which cornstalks or similar stalks are subjected to treatment whereby their fibers become` incorporated ,and interengaged in the finished product to cause such product to have great strength and durability, and into or through which nails may be driven without likelihood of splitting the article.

lThe full objects and advantages of my -4 invention willy appear in connection with the detailed description thereof, and the novel features embodied in my inventive idea will be particularly pointed out in the claims.`

In the accompanying drawings, which il-.

lustrate one form in which my invention may be embodied,-

Fig.) is a side elevational part sectional view of the apparatus. Fig. 2 is a view in horizontal section on the line 2-2 of Fig. l. Fig. 3 is a top view of one of the beating tanks. Fig. 4 is a fragmentary View having a roller and cutters shown 1n plan. 5 1s a verticalsectional view of a screening Fig.

. device. Fig. 6 is a fragmentary view showing a cutter. Fig. 7 vis a view at right angles to Fig. 6.

Referring to the construction shown in 'y the drawings, t-he numeral 10 designates a hopper for receiving corn or other stalks C. Joined with the bottom of the hopper is a casing 12 which contains a pair of endless conveyors 14 and '16 and a pair of rollers 18 and, 20 between which the stalks pass for downward feeding movement. Joined with the lower end of the casing 12 is a receptacle 22, the junction between this receptacle and the casing 12 being extended at one side to form a casing 24 for a pair of rotating knives 26 and 28 which cut the stalks into short pieces. j These knives are secured to a vertical shaft 30 having a driving pulley 32 secured t6 its lower end. F rom the receptacle 22 a pipe 34 leads into ai blower casing 36 containing any wellknown form of blower. From the periphery of the blower case 36, two pipes 38 and 40, having shut-ofi' slides 42 and 44, lead respectively to two beating tanks 46' and 48 containing beaters 50 and 52 of any suitable or well-known construction and driven by shafts 54 to which pulleys 56'are secured as shown in Fig. 3. The two tanks 46 and 48 are alike and are arranged in alinement inthe embodiment shown with two similar tanks 58 and 60 for receiving additional raw material, such as rags, and containing beaters 62 and 64. The tanks 58 and 6() are intended to be used only when a soft pliable product is desired. By increasing the amount of rag pulp, the-product will be rendered more pliable, while if it is not desired to produce a pliable product, the useof the tanks 58 and 60 maybe omitted'. I have found 'that twenty-live pounds of .rag pulp in connection with one hundred pounds -of cornstalk pulp will produce a very soft pliable product. Water may be introduced into the tanks as desired through pipes 57 and the proper amount of an alkali, such as potassium carbonate is added to the tanks to reduce the raw material to a pulp. For instance one pound of thev alkalimay be employed for each fifty pounds of cornstalks. lVhen quicker action is desired, the amount of alkali will be increased. Below the series of tanks just referred to is a mixing receptacle 66 within which rotate mixing blades -68 secured to a shaft 70 on the upper end of whichl is a driving pulley 72. The four tanks 46, 48, 58 and 60 are j connected, respectively, with the mixing receptacle 66 by pipes 74, 76, 78 and 80, having shut-off valves 82, 84,86 and 88, whereby the two tanks 46` and 48 may be drawn from alternately and the two tanks 58 and may also be drawn from alternately.

From the bottom of the mixing receptacle 66 a pipe 90, having a shut-oill valve 92 delivers..into a hopper 94 cont-aining a sieveJ 96 for sifting out any large pieces whiclr have not been reduced. rlhe bottom of the `takes therefrom the liquid which runs out of the pulp and delivers it through a vertieal'pipe 110 into a horizontal pipe 112 hav- `ing branches /114, 116, 118 and 120fcontrolled by shut-off valves and which deliver respectively into the four beating tanks. ln alinement with the endless screen 102 is a second endless screen 122 underneath which is a casing 124 connected by a pipe 126 with a vacuum pump 128 which takes out a con- Siderable of the remaining moisture. Boyond the endless screen 122 are two compression rollers 130 and 132 which still further compress the pulpinto sheet form. It is desirable at this time to subject the sheet material to a drying operation. As a suitable means for accomplishing this object, l have shown a drying chamber 134 having steam coils 136J in the bottom thereof. Above the steam coils in the chamber 134 are a number of rollers 138 around which an endless belt 140 passes back and forth. A. rollr 142 serves'to press thematerial onto the belt,140. The action of the steam coils in drying the material is increased by a fan 144 mounted above the Achamber 134 and delivering air thereinto. After passing out of the drying chamber, the sheet material is passed` through as; phaltum contained in a vat 146, the material being held underthesurface of the asphaltum by rollers 148. From the asphaltum bath, the material is passed through a chamber 150 where it* is dusted in the following manner. Powdered-material such as a mixture of cement and soapstone is contained in a receptacle 152 from. which it is taken vby a blower 154 and delivered by pipes 156 and 158 into the lower and upper portions of the chamber so that the sheet material is "dusted on both sides.- From the chamber 150 the material passes between the pair of rollers 160 and 162, the latter being cylindrical and the roller 160 having the .shape shown in Fig. 4. with four inclined annular surfaces so that the material is pressed into shape for forming four shingles transversely as .indicated in Fig. 5 by the letter S with each Shingle thicker at one end than at the other. `The material then passes between a lower roller 164 and a I shaft 166'which carries live cutters 168, 170,

172, 174 and 176. The cutters 168 and 176 are disc cutters and trim the margins of the material so as to form the shingles of the'proper length. l rlhe cutter 172 is also a dise cutter and yserves to cut the sheet material longitudinally along its centralv yond the nozzle 17 8 is a wire sieve 186 havnga frame 188 to which rocking arms 190 are attached, these arms being rocked by a shaft 192 to which a driving pulley 194 is secured. `A chute 196 connectswith a hopper 198 Vto deliver sand or pulverized 'rock to the sieve 186 which isshook by the arms 190. rlhe sheet material passes between rollers 200 and 202, the upper roller -200 pressing into the material, the sand or Apulverized rock which has been distributed thereon. neath a reciprocating cutter 204 which cuts it transversely to` the desired size. shown in Figs. 6 and 7, this cutter is guided for reciprocation by guides 206, and it has arm members 208 at its two ends which ycarry rollers 210 working in cam grooves 212 formed in cam discs 214 securedto a shaft 216 to which a driving pulley 218 is.

secured. y

' lhe operation and advantages of my invention will be readily understood in connection with` the foregoing description. Cornstalks or similar stalks 'are fedI into the hopper 10. The" conveyors 14 and 16 and the rollers 18 and 20 feed the stalks, while the cutters 26 and 28 cut them into short lengths, preferably of about/one inch.

rlihe blower in the casing 36 forces the stalksl into one' of the tanks 46 and 48, it being.J

understood that reduced pulp may atthis time be drawn from the other tank and The material then passes undersau Asl

that when it is desired to add rag pulp, this latter may be supplied from one of the tanks 58 and 60. vThe pulp 1s thoroughly mixed in the mixing receptacle 66, from i which it is deliveredl for further treatment` according to the character of the product which is to be manufactured. As previously described, the subsequent voperations include drying, treatment with a bath of asphaltum, dusting bothI sides .of the sheet With a mixture of powdered cement and soapstone, pressing the4 sheet into shape to form four shingles lying sideV by side transversely, cutting and trimming the sheetsl to produce four longitudinal rows of shin les, passing the material under a nozzle wich sprays an adhesive on its upper; surface,

lsupplying sand or pulverized rock to the upper surface, passing the sheet material between rollers which presses in the lastmentioned coating, and finally cutting the longitudinal strips transversely to produce the finished-article. It will be understood that for articles other5 than shingles, some` of th'e above steps may be omitted or varied according to the character of the article to be produced. For instance, in place of a bath of asphaltum, a bath of resin and waxmay be employed. Also the shaping may be varied as desired.

l claim 1'. Apparatus for. making| artificial construction material comprising means for cutting cornstalks and similar stalks into pieges, a tank in which the cut-up stalks are reduced to a pulp, means for conveying thel cut-up stalks from said cutting means to said tank, an endless screen upon which the pulp is delivered toJform a sheet, a receptacle containing waterproofing material, means for causing said sheet to travel underneath the surface of the waterproofing material, and'mechanism for cutting said sheet.

2. Apparatus for making artificial construction material comprising means for cutting cornstalks and similar stalks into pieces, a receptacle for receiving said pieces, a blower, connected` with said receptacle, a

' pipe leading from said blower, a tank with which said pipe is connected and in which the cut-up stalksare reduced to a pulp, an endless screen upon which the pulp is delivered to form a sheet, areceptacle containing waterprtofing -materiaL means for causing said sheet to travel underneath the surface of the waterproofing material, and mechanism for cutting said sheets.

3. Apparatus for making artificial con.'

struction material comprising means for cutting cornstalks and slmilar stalks into pieces, a receptacle for recelving sald pieces, a

blower connected with said receptacle, a pipey 'mechanism for cutting saidsheet.

4. Apparatus for making artificial ccnstruction material comprising means for cutting cornstalks and similar stalks into pieces,

a receptacle for receiving saidpieces, ablower connected with said receptacle, a pipe leading from said'blower, a tank with which said pipe is connected and in which the cut-up stalks are reduced to a pulp, an endless screen upon which the pulp -is delivered to form a sheet, a drier through which said sheet passes, a receptacle containing waterproofing material, means for causing said sheet to travel .underneath the surface of the waterproofing material, a receptacle -'for powdered material, a blower connected Awith said receptacle and delivering upon said sheet, rollers for pressing said sheet into shapemeans for cutting said sheet longitudinally'into strips, a device for Spraying an adhesive upon the upper surface of said f sheet, a device for applying the sand to the adhesive coated sheet, and means for ting said sheet transversely.

5. Apparatus for making artificial construction material comprising means for cutting cornstalks and similar stalks into pieces, a tank in which the cut-up -stalks are reduced to a pulp, means for conveying the cut-up stalks from said cutting means to said tank, an endless screen upon which the, pulp is delivered to form a sheet, a receptacle` containing waterproofing material, means forA causing said sheet to travel underneath the surface of the waterproofing material,

. means for pressingsaid sheet to form a plurality of rows of shingleswhich are thicker at one end than at the other, means for cutting said rows from each other longitudi-- nally'of the sheet to form strips, and means for cutting said strips transversely to form separate shingles. vf

6. .Apparatus 'for making artificial construction material comprising means for cutting cornstalks and similar stalks into pieces. twotanks in which the cut-up stalks are reduced to a pulp, means for conveying the cut-up stalks into one of said tanks at a time, two tanks in which other fibrous material is reduced to a pulp, a mixer, pipes connecting said four tanks respectively with said mixer, shutoif devices in said pipes, an endless screen upon which pulp from said mixer is delivered to form a sheet, a receptacle containing waterproofing material,

means for causing said sheet to travel underv neath the surface` of the waterproofing material, and means for cutting said sheet.

, 7. Apparatus for making artificial construction 'material comprising a hopper for receiving cornstalks and similar stalks, a pair of endless conveyors and ,a pair of rollers in said hopper between which they stalks travel, mechanism adjacent said rollers for cutting said stalks into pieces, a receptacle for receiving said pieces, a blower connected with-said receptacle, two pipes leading from said blower, shut-offl devices in said pipes, two tanks with which said. pipes are respectively connected and in which the cut-A up stalks are reduced to a pulp, an endless screen upon which the pulp is delivered, 'a receptaclel underneath said endless screen,

rial, means for causingy said sheet material said endless screen for pressing the pulp thereon into sheet form, a second screen beyond said first mentioned endless screen, a casing for said Second screen, a Vacuum pump connected with said casing, a drierf'or1 said sh-eet material beyond said second screen, a receptacle containing waterproofing mateto travel underneath the surface of the water-proong material, a receptacle for powdered material, a blower connected with said receptacle and delivering upon said sheet material, rollers for pressing said sheet materialfinto shape, means for cutting said sheet material longitudinally into strips, a device for spraying an adhesive upon the upper surface of said sheet material, a device for applying sand to the adhesive covered surface, a roller engaging the sanded surface, and means for cutting said sheet material transversely. 8. Apparatus for making artificial construction material comprising a hopper for receiving cornstalks and similar stalks, a pair of vendless conveyors and a pair of rollers in said hopper between which the vstalks travel, mechanism adjacent said rollers for cutting said stalks into pieces, a' receptacle for receiving said pieces, a blower connected with said receptacle, two pipes leading from said blower, shut-off' de- Vices in said pipes, two tanks with which said pipes are respectively connected and in which the cut-up stalks are reduced to ar pulp, two tanks in which other fibrous material is reduced to'a pulp, a mixer, pipes connecting said four tanks respectively with said mixer, shut-off devices in said plpes,

an endless screen upon which the pulp fromf said mixer is delivered, a receptacle underneath said endless screen, a pump connected with said receptacle for takin liquid therefrom and delivering it to sai tanks, an in- -clined belt traveling above said endless .screen for pressing the pulp thereon into sheet form; a,second endless screen beyond said first-mentioned endless. screen, a casing rfor said second screen, a vacuum pump.

connected withsaid casing, a drier for said sheetl material beyond said lsecond screen, a

' receptacle containing waterproofing mate- Vlili rial, means for causing said sheet material .to travel underneath the surface of the water-cooling material,` a receptacle for powdered material, a blower connected with said receptacle and delivering upon said sheet material rollers for pressing said Maaate upon the upper surface of said sheet material, a device for applying sand to the adhesive covered surface, a roller for engaging the sanded surface, and means for cuting `said sheet material transversely.

9. rllhe process of making artificial construction material which consists in cuttingcornstalks and similar stalks into pieces, reducing said pieces to a pulp with a chemical agent, pressing the pulp into a sheet, and

subjecting the sheet to a bath of waterproofing material.

, 10. 'llhe processof making artificial construction material which consists in cutting cornstalks and similar stalks into pieces, reducing said pieces to a pulp with a chemical agent, pressing the pulp into a sheet, subjecting the sheet to a bath of waterproofing material, and cutting the sheet.

1l. The process of making artificial construction material which consistsin cuttingL cornstalks and similar stalks into pieces, reducing said pieces to a pulp with a chemical agent, pressing the pulp into a sheet, drying into strips, applying an adhesive to the upper surface of said strips, applying sand to said adhesive covered surface, and cuttingf said strips transversely. A

13. '.lhe process of making artificial 'construction material which consists in cutting cornstalks and similar stalks into pieces, re-V ducing said pieces toa pulp with a chemical agent, reducing other'fibrous material to a pulp, 'mixing together the pulp from the two sources, pressing the combined pulp into a sheet, drying said sheet, and subjecting the sheet to a bath of waterproofin material.

14. 'llhe process of making artificial construction material whichl consists in cutting cornstalks andsimilar stalks into pieces, reducing said pieces to a pulp with a alkali,

-reducing rags to a pulp with an alkali,'mix' ing together theulp from the two sources, pressing the comblned pulp into a sheet, drying said sheet, subjectingthesheet to a bathv of waterproofing material and cutting the Vsheet; v

whereof I hereunto afiix my 7 In testimony signature.

MAX sKoLNrK. y i 

